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Controversial plans to expand Chicago O’Hare Airport
would add an additional runway and reconfigure the
seven existing runways. The proposed expansion would
allow the airport to handle 1.6 million flights annually,
up from approximately 928,000 in 2003. O’Hare is not
alone in having expansion plans: 18 of the 31 large hub
airports in the U.S. are planning to add runways in the
next decade. As of 2001, these 31 airports accounted
for 70 percent of U.S. air passengers, and the top 25
of these airports accounted for 86 percent of all severe
air traffic delays. However, neighboring communities
often oppose airport expansions, and the O’Hare expansion
plans are particularly controversial. O’Hare is
surrounded by a densely populated ring of suburban
municipalities whose residents already complain about
the noise generated by flights in and out of O’Hare.